Hmm… as a Buddhist, the goal is realization that every identity, including ‘human’, is not real. So, I think your first step is pretty spot on actually. Letting go of what is expected of me is certainly my biggest challenge. I am a caregiver by nature and place a lot of pressure on myself to take care of everyone and everything around me, often to my own detriment. Thank you for the reminder.

Hello, I would like to subscribe to your “dancing through the world with glee” newsletter. That is the ideal state, as far as I’m concerned, and most of my practice is focused on getting there.

I’ve sort of run the gamut, but I spent several years as a Hare Krishna that informed most of my current practice - I’m glad I did it and learned a whole lot but there is damage to undo.

Currently I practice my own homebrew blend of Discordianism and Buddhism. Since I came from a high-demand environment, I reject the idea of spiritual authority now - no teachers, no gurus, no organizations. My practice is not beholden to anyone. I also reject the idea of dogma, which is not out of bounds in Buddhism when you consider the hundreds of sutras that directly contradict each other. Buddhists know they cannot all be true, you take what works and leave the rest.

One thing that I heard at a dharma talk once was “write your own sutra.” Start with “This I have heard. One day, the Buddha was teaching…” this and that student was there, someone asks a question, the Buddha answers. The speaker encouraged everyone who had a question they were struggling with to write a sutra, ask the Buddha, and see how he answers. I liked this approach so I’ve written several sutras myself. I write, I meditate, and I do mantra chanting as my primary day to day practice.

I have been pagan in the past, before I came to dharmic practice, so I’m open to a lot of different ideas. I do sometimes do chaos magick in the form of sigils, and I do some deity work, mostly tantric. I read tarot, but only for myself. I’m very open, generally, to all forms of sincere practice, and when pressed on my beliefs, I paraphrase Robert Anton Wilson and say “I don’t believe anything but I can imagine quite a bit.”

Edit: It’s a little stream-of-consciousness and silly, but if you’d like an insight into my practice, https://ChaosBuddha.org.